6= unconditional love. It is nice to see that truth and love are energetically related by the numbers. An important part of my journey has been to find the truth about myself through numerology. I began to love myself more as more of my truth was revealed to me.

Back story: Truth is part of the energy of number 7. I have been working on this truth thingfor a l o n g time because I’m a 37/10 Life Path.

What do these seemingly unrelated things have in common?

Or should I say, what can raccoons teach us about truth?

Currently working on a blog post about lies I tell myself, I assumed there was something beyond the obvious “the masks we wear” so, I did a bit of digging.

According to SpiritAnimal.com, raccoons could represent an aspect of your personality and make you aware of unsavory behavior. (Lying to myself does feel unsavory once revealed.) Your self-awareness is letting you know that you are being dishonest with yourself.

This fit perfectly for me but, I kept digging, it just seemed too obvious.

From Spiritsymbols.com, I found out raccoon is symbolic of the generous protector. “This creature is the little bandit of the animal kingdom, always looking out for family and tribe, helping the less-fortunate even if that means stealing from the rich, to feed the poor. When raccoons go on a raiding party they always give the best finds to the lookout.”

This sounds so nice to me, being so generous to those around you. Well, not stealing from the rich but, giving the best you find. Like when I make a perfectly toasty, melty sandwich and give it to my husband. I want to eat it myself but it’s nice for him to have a perfect sandwich too! I struggle with how much of my work I give away. It feels good to share and then I get entrepreneurs saying, “You need to value yourself. If you don’t value yourself by charging, no one will value your work or you! Charge what you are worth.”

Oi, can’t I just be a raccoon and give the best bits to my lookout?

And my most favorite morsel I found on the symbolism of raccoons from earthmagic.net:

“We have everything we need.”

I have been using this mantra for some time now, trying to get this Law of Attraction business down AND I do prefer to stay positive. I also believe, with all my heart, that I would not be getting all these ideas if they weren’t meant for me to share. My soul tells me; creative ideas and the resources to bring those creative ideas to others come from the same place. It just seems logical to me.

Or …..am I lying to myself and use it as an excuse not to charge people for my work?

Now we are getting somewhere. I find many truths as I meditate. Often playing the game, “Try that on for size”. I pick a scenario, run it through my head and see how it feels.Today I will meditate on the following:

· give all my work away, not charge for anything.

· charge more for what I do and charge for everything.

My suggestion for your meditation practice using the raccoon for a guide; try the visualization game I just mentioned and ask yourself these questions:

Do I live in truth?

More important…

Do I live my truth?

Increasingly important….

What is the truth about me NOW?

The now part is important too as your truth can change. Also, the truth is, only you can discern the truth about yourself for yourself. You can go looking for clues, support and guidance….all self-actualization tools are good(especially my book!)….but, ultimately only YOU know what is true for you. This is the reason meditation is so important. It allows you to watch your thoughts without judging them. (Watch Dr. Myss TedTalk on “Choices” for more on truth and its effect on your health.)

Here are some examples. Do you think these people are living their truth?

· A person volunteering to lecture about how to take care of the environment and makes a living selling stock of companies who pollute the environment.

· A mother who does yoga and meditates every day and yells at her children and belittles them.

· A lightworker who preaches veganism at every turn because of its violence to animals but attends resistance marches.

· A yoga studio owner who refuses to give a class credit on an expired coupon because, “Yoga is a lifestyle, not something to try out.”

· Having a few beers on a Sunday while watching football and attending meditation on Wednesday.

Do you think these people are living their truth?

Sorry that was a trick question. It might be easy to judge these examples but it is not our business to do so. I merely point them out so you allow yourself what YOU need. Do you need to give up beer to meditate? Do you need to commit to yoga every day to even consider it? Can you insert a few vegan meals a week and not say anything to anyone about it? Can you use yoga and meditation to calm yourself cuz your kids drive you batty and you lose it once in a while?

This is your path. This is your journey. How do you feel about yourself and your choices?

Someone close to me joked that they would like to see me talk about meditation with a beer in my hand. Part of me likes that idea. Some people make this spirituality and self-actualization journey so pious it gets a bit annoying. Can we be real, make money, use a few cuss words and live a spiritual life?

Shit, beer and meditation are equally delicious to me! But like lemon and chocolate, I don’t mix them because then I wouldn’t enjoy either of them.

If you have been seeing that masked bandit, there is a bit more about him below.

May truth set you free, may you love yourself enough to allow it.

Love and Light,

Tricia

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If you happen to see a repeat of the raccoon or your are obsessed with them (scared to death of them perhaps?) : You have an insatiable curiosity which can occasionally blind you to the dangers of exploring what you are interested in and you thrive on new experiences and new activities. You are an excellent problem solver and have a great deal of ingenuity in solving puzzles and mysteries. You are calm and serene under pressure and often calculating in your response to chaos

The warmest Aloha to you. Please feel free to take what you need, just cite me as your source and send an energy exchange in the appropriate measure at the Donate page. Mahalo for your visit. Send inquiries to: TheEnergyGarden(at)outlook.com